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 Pitta-Pacifying Foods

AYURVEDIC DIET
UPDATED 2020

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Pitta-Pacifying Foods
 

Pitta can be brought back into balance by eating the right foods. Read below to find
out what you can eat to help pacify this dosha. If you are not certain whether your
pitta is out of balance, take our free Ayurvedic Profile™ quiz.

Fruits
Fruits that pacify pitta will generally be sweet and somewhat astringent. Dried fruits
are typically also acceptable, but are best in small quantities, so as not to further
accelerate pitta’s tendency toward rapid digestion. Fruits to avoid are those that are
exceptionally heating or sour (like bananas, cranberries, and green grapes). You’ll
find many fruits in both the favor and avoid columns below because different varieties
of the same fruit can truly be pacifying or aggravating, depending on how sweet or
sour they are. When trying to balance pitta, learning to distinguish between these
tastes and choosing sweet fruits over sour ones is always very helpful.

And remember, fruits and fruit juices are best enjoyed alone—30 minutes before, and
ideally at least 1 hour after, any other food. This helps to ensure optimal digestion.
Note: this rule does not apply to fruits that we typically consider vegetables
(avocados, cucumbers, tomatoes, etc.). You will find these fruits listed among the
“vegetables.”

Favor Avoid

 Apples (sweet)  Apples (sour)

 Applesauce  Apricots (sour)
 Apricots (sweet)  Bananas
 Berries (sweet)  Berries (sour)
 Cherries (sweet)  Cherries (sour)
 Coconut  Cranberries
 Dates  Grapefruit
 Figs  Grapes (green)
 Grapes (red, purple, black)  Kiwi
 Limes  Lemons
 Mangos (ripe)  Mangos (green)
 Melons  Oranges (sour)
 Oranges (sweet)  Peaches
 Papaya  Persimmons
 Pears  Pineapple (sour)
 Pineapple (sweet)  Plums (sour)
 Plums (sweet)  Tamarind
 Pomegranates
 Prunes
 Raisins
 Strawberries
 Watermelon
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Vegetables
Vegetables that pacify pitta will generally be somewhat sweet and either bitter,
astringent, or both. Many vegetables include some combination of these tastes; so
experimenting with a wide variety of vegetables is a great way to diversify your pitta
pacifying diet. Pitta can usually digest raw vegetables better than vata and kapha, but
mid-day is often the best time of day to have them because digestive strength is at its
peak. The only vegetables for pitta to reduce or avoid are those that are particularly
spicy, heating, sharp, or sour—like garlic, green chilies, radishes, onion, and mustard
greens.

Favor Avoid

 Avocado  Olives (black)  Beet Greens

 Artichoke  Onions (cooked)  Beets (raw)
 Asparagus  Parsley  Burdock Root
 Beets (cooked)  Parsnips  Corn (fresh)
 Bell Peppers  Peas  Daikon Radish
 Bitter Melon  Peppers (sweet)  Eggplant
 Broccoli  Potatoes  Garlic
 Brussels Sprouts  Pumpkin  Green Chilies
 Cabbage  Radishes (cooked)  Horseradish
 Carrots (cooked)  Rutabaga  Kohlrabi
 Cauliflower  Spaghetti Squash  Leeks (raw)
 Celery  Sprouts (not spicy)  Mustard Greens
 Cilantro  Squash, Summer  Olives, green
 Collard Greens  Squash, Winter  Onions (raw)
 Cucumber  Spinach (raw)  Peppers (hot)
 Dandelion Greens  Sweet Potatoes  Radishes (raw)
 Green Beans  Watercress  Spinach (cooked)
 Jerusalem Artichoke  Wheat Grass  Tomatoes
 Kale  Zucchini  Turnip greens
 Leafy Greens  Turnips
 Leeks (cooked)
 Lettuce
 Mushrooms
 Okra

Grains
Grains that pacify pitta are cooling, sweet, dry, and grounding. Grains tend to be
staples in our diets, and overall, pitta benefits from their sweet, nourishing nature.
You’ll also notice that many of the grains that benefit pitta are rather dry; this helps to
offset pitta’s oily nature. When it comes to balancing pitta, avoiding grains that are
heating (like buckwheat, corn, millet, brown rice, and yeasted breads) is the most
important guideline.

Favor Avoid

 Amaranth  Buckwheat
 Barley  Corn
 Cereal (dry)  Millet
 Couscous  Muesli
 Crackers  Polenta
 Durham Flour  Rice (brown)
 Granola  Rye
 Oat Bran  Yeasted Bread
 Oats
 Pancakes
 Pasta
 Quinoa
 Rice (basmati, white, wild)
 Rice Cakes
 Seitan
 Spelt
 Sprouted Wheat Bread
 Tapioca
 Wheat
 Wheat Bran

Legumes
Legumes are generally astringent in taste and are therefore largely pitta pacifying, so
feel free to enjoy a wide variety of them. Beans that are not appropriate for pitta are
those that are especially sour or oily and, not coincidentally – also heating.

Favor Avoid

 Adzuki Beans  Miso

 Black Beans  Soy Meats
 Black-Eyed Peas  Soy Sauce
 Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)
  Kidney Beans  Urad Dal
 Lentils
 Lima Beans
 Mung Beans
 Mung Dal
 Navy Beans
 Pinto Beans
 Split Peas
 Soy Beans
 Soy Cheese
 Soy Flour
 Soy Milk
 Soy Powder
 Tempeh
 Tofu
 White Beans

Dairy
Dairy products tend to be grounding, nourishing, and cooling, so many of them are
balancing for pitta. Those to avoid are exceptionally sour, salty, or heating. As a rule,
dairy milks (cow’s milk, goat’s milk, sheep’s milk, etc.) should be taken at least one
hour before or after any other food. For this reason, avoid drinking milk with meals.
Almond and rice milks are good substitutes, if you need to combine milk with other
foods, or if you don’t digest dairy milks well.

Favor Avoid

 Butter (unsalted)  Butter (salted)

 Cheese (soft, unsalted, not aged)  Buttermilk
 Cottage Cheese  Cheese (hard)
 Cow’s Milk  Frozen Yogurt
 Ghee  Sour Cream
 Goat’s Milk  Yogurt (store bought, or with
 Goat’s Cheese (soft, unsalted) fruit)
 Ice Cream
 Yogurt (homemade, diluted, without
 fruit)

Nuts & Seeds

Nuts and seeds tend to be extremely oily and are usually heating, so most of them are
not terrifically balancing for pitta. That said, there are a few types of nuts, and several
seeds that are acceptable in small quantities; these varieties tend to be less oily, and
are either mildly heating or cooling in nature.

Favor Avoid

 Almonds (soaked and peeled)  Almonds (with skin)

 Charole Nuts  Brazil Nuts
 Coconut  Cashews
 Flax Seeds  Chia Seeds
 Halva  Filberts
 Popcorn (buttered, without salt)  Macadamia Nuts
 Pumpkin Seeds  Peanuts
 Sunflower Seeds  Pecans
 Pine Nuts
 Pistachios
 Sesame Seeds
 Tahini
 Walnut

Meat & Eggs

Pitta does best with animal foods that taste sweet, are relatively dry (like rabbit or
venison) and that are either mildly heating or cooling in nature. Meats that don’t work
are those that are especially oily, salty, or heating (things like dark chicken, beef,
salmon, or tuna).

Favor Avoid
  Buffalo  Beef
 Chicken (white)  Chicken (dark)
 Eggs (white only)  Duck
 Fish (freshwater)  Eggs (yolk)
 Rabbit  Fish (saltwater)
 Shrimp  Lamb
 Turkey (white)  Pork
 Venison  Salmon
 Sardines
 Seafood
 Tuna Fish
 Turkey (dark)

Oils
Despite being oily in nature, pitta does well with a moderate amount of oil – as long
as it is cooling. The very best oils for pitta are sunflower oil, ghee, coconut oil, and
olive oil. It’s also important to keep in mind that toxins tend to concentrate in fats, so
buying organic oils may be more important than buying organic fruits and vegetables.

Favor Avoid

 Coconut Oil  Almond Oil

 Flax Seed Oil  Apricot Oil
 Ghee  Corn Oil
 Olive Oil  Safflower Oil
 Primrose Oil  Sesame Oil
 Sunflower Oil
 Soy Oil
 Walnut Oil

Sweeteners
Since the sweet taste is one that soothes pitta, most sweeteners are well tolerated by
pitta, but some are simply too heating or too processed for pitta. In general, naturally
occurring sweet tastes are far more balancing than sugary sweets, so even the
appropriate sweeteners should be used in moderation.

Favor Avoid

 Barley Malt  Honey

 Date Sugar  Jaggary
 Fructose  Molasses
 Fruit Juice Concentrates  White Sugar
 Maple Syrup
 Rice Syrup
 Sucanat
 Turbinado

Spices
Most spices are heating by nature and therefore have the potential to aggravate pitta.
The spices to favor are only mildly heating, help to maintain a balanced digestive fire
without provoking pitta, and, in some cases, are actively cooling. In particular, the
cooling qualities of cardamom, cilantro, coriander, fennel and mint help to calm
pitta’s heat. On occasion, these spices can be used to make foods that would otherwise
be too hot for pitta more tolerable. Cumin, saffron, and turmeric, though heating, also
offer some particularly valuable pitta pacifying properties.

Favor Avoid

 Basil (fresh)  Ajwan

 Black Pepper (small amounts)  Allspice
 Cardamom  Anise
 Cinnamon (small amounts)  Basil (dry)
 Coriander (seeds or powder)  Bay Leaf
 Cumin (seeds or powder)  Caraway
 Dill  Cayenne
 Fennel  Cloves
 Ginger (fresh)  Fenugreek
 Mint  Garlic
 Neem Leaves  Ginger (dry)
  Orange Peel  Hing (Asafoetida)
 Parsley  Mace
 Peppermint  Marjoram
 Saffron  Mustard Seeds
 Spearmint  Nutmeg
 Tarragon  Oregano
 Turmeric  Paprika
 Vanilla  Pippali
 Wintergreen  Poppy Seeds
 Rosemary
 Sage
 Salt
 Savory
 Thyme
 Trikatu

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